What You May Discover

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Many ideas in this story are not likely to be found in books, magazines or newspapers. You may become more enlightened by these ideas and come away with a fresher approach to using tools of discovery. Your unique mind and what you will learn here may become tools of truth. Often, when I was young, myown independent point of view was thwarted. If I expressed an unorthodox thought I was told that my idea was “childish” or simply “silly”.Like huge crushing machinery “the culture” set about to mold me into the person I “should” become. The primary method was intimidation. Of course these people were always older and controlled all the power. It was impossible to express myideascontrary to those held by mother, father, uncle , the school teacher, or adult neighbor without running into serious conflict. Add this weapon to the ego destroying method of repetition to see how helpless I could become. How may I alone, only a child, introduce my own ideas from my own mind? Or are those adults always right and my ideas truly have no value? I was bombarded by hearing and reading the same conventional ideas over and over. Like most of us I gradually grew to express and repeat those very same phrases. Even ideas that were abhorrent to me, were repeated, in order to avoid continual conflict. In short, I accepted the culture by submission. It is easier to submit in a social setting, but submission is not the road to truth. Since those earlier times, I have come to realize that a culture must not destroy egos but develop and encourage them. After all, our brains have been developing for some 200,000 years and it has been 25,000 years since the last Neanderthal walked here. Let’s celebrate our human brains. Be proud to make use of your brain. It is far better for a person to stumble in his quest for truth than to surrender his psyche. The path to truth is not easy but it is far more rewarding than pretense and illusion. I promise that by the time you finish this story you will feel better about yourself and discover your place in the universe.

I will state my personal beliefs here clearly and take responsibility for them. I do not seek to proselytize. I believe that theuniverse is orderly and structured by specific laws of physics and most likely originated by some“Entity” which is unknown and not yet knowable. I also believe there is no evidence the “Entity” would resemble human form because that biological structure is limited to life on Earth and unsuited for travel outside of our planet. Our planet Earth orbits our sun. That sun and its solar system are located in an unspectacular location in our MilkyWay galaxy. The diameter of our MilkyWay galaxy is roughly 100,000 light years and contains at least 40 billion suns. New stars continue to be formed there and old stars die out continually. The Milky Way is only one of billions of galaxies, smaller and larger, in our known universe.

Most people call the entity responsible for the known universe and human beings,

“Creator”, “God”, “Allah” or “Holy Spirit”. I chose “Entity” because there is virtually no known EVIDENCE of such an existence of any “human-like, male, all-powerful being”. The universe is so unknown, vast and complex as to be almost incomprehensible with existing knowledge and technology. Because of that we need to collect all the information possible in order to be better informed and know what is true. We do not need to fabricate stories to fit into our ideas of what ought to be. I avoid words like “Creator”, “God”, “Allah” or “Holy Spirit” because they define the unknown as a SuperMan/All-powerful Being who controls individual lives. And, always “He”, a male, a Man God. There is no evidence of that. Men wrote “holy” books and men read themfrom pulpits. They told stories of an invisible SuperMan/All-powerful Being that meted out punishments and have enthralled audiences for centuries. Yet there is not a single bit of evidence in all of recorded history that the “Creator”, “God”, “Allah” or “Holy Spirit” exists. There is no EVIDENCE that a “God” ever spoke to a human being. There are many people who claim to have heard“words from God”. Whole churches have been built and armies went to war slaughtering each other because someone “heard God’s Word”. Reasonable men today would not accept hearsay evidence in a court of law. People who hear instructions from “God’s voices” populate mental institutions. Yet people attending churches, watching televised sermons or reading popular books and magazines are bombarded by messages telling you of “God’s plan for you”. Not one, butthousands of alleged “God’s plan for you”.The vested interests of power or greed depend on an ill-informed audience. Rational education and highly developed human brains are tools that will help us find truth. Let’s poke and prod, question, study and investigate while embracing the joy of the journey.

If you already know everything and believe there is nothing new to learn don’t waste your time here. I discover new things and new ideas every day and I’m 78. I gave up knowing about everything since I was a teen. That’s when I believed that I already knew all. Boy was I wrong! If you believe that old knowledge is superior to the latest data, accept unverified words as truth, believe in magic, hear holy voices or see angels, you may not be comfortable here. If you follow scientific methodology and empirical evidence and are ready to challenge an idea based on these, welcome. If you trust your own abilities and the mind that you are so capable of using you will be rewarded. You needn’t believe a word here and you shouldn’t take my word for it simply because I put these words on paper. Every word, phrase or idea should be subject to your personal scrutiny. You will ultimately be responsible for your own words. They should always be free to be tested, examined, investigated and retested if necessary before you accept them as yours.

At 19, I was awed by my first nighttime view of the star-studded pitch black sky over the lodge at Yellowstone, Wyoming. When I lived in New York, as in any populated urban area, the “light blight” of the night sky obliterates most of the star show. Out in Wyoming in near total darkness it looked as if it was a view from another planet. It was awesome. It was beautiful. It was magical. The black sky was studded with thousands of pinpoints of sparkling lights. I could identify some of the constellations I knew of. I accepted the view of the night sky, the crescent moon, constellations, and the myriad stars as if it was right there in the sky just as I saw it. Yet it was an illusion. In truth it could not have been possible for the night sky to exist as I saw it. Remember the speed of light is a fixed constant. Each sky lit body traveled or is still traveling from minutes to millions of years in order for the light to reach my eyes at that given moment. Many of those stars no longer existed. Yet the light from them was still traveling towards me. Hadn’t I always believed that one of the proofs of a fact is “seeing is believing”? It was time for me to reevaluate a more definitive method than “seeing is believing” to discover the truth. Apparently the world is more complex than I had imagined. The nearest star we see, Proxima Centauri, is 4 light years away. It means that star in the night sky as it was 4 years ago, not as it is tonight. The light from that closest star has traveled 40 trillion kilometers to reach our eyes. If it were possible to go there using present space ship speeds it would take us between 32,000 to 75,000 years. If we were fortunate enough to discern Saturn, a neighboring planet in our solar system, we would be looking at that planet as it was an hour ago. If a massive explosion were to occur on Saturn we would not see it though our telescope until an hour later. The view of the Andromeda Galaxy has been traveling to our eyes on Earth for two million years. Some other stars are hundreds of times larger than our own sun the center of our solar system, and some of those stars are billions of light years away. Many others no longer exist yet we still see them every night. Evidence accepted by scientists today indicates that a massive and enormous explosion of a dense and hot state occurred suddenly some 13.7 billion years ago.This formed the basis for the known universe in which the galaxies and stars continue on their expanding course. This is known as the “Big Bang Theory”. As enormous and intimidating as the universe is we need to understand it. Every new bit of factual information added is another building block of truth.

Scientists, astronomers, mathematicians, cosmologists, and physicists have provided data needed to explore space. Among the benefits of space exploration is a better understanding of our origins. Not only the origins of the universe and our planet but also how we humans developed. We share our accumulated knowledge among other space exploring nations. We have applied scientific theories which led to breaking through Earth’s pull of gravity and landing men on the moon. In one single century, our 20th, we leaped from the invention of the first wood and cloth flying machine to landing on the moon. We routinely place objects into orbit for commercial and scientific enterprises. Prior to those times we were relatively ignorant of the world outside our planet. We simply did not have the knowledge, experience, technical expertise or inventions needed to discover more. In short, man needs tools in order tolearn the truth. And the primary tool of mankind is knowledge. The writers of the Old and New Testaments, the Koran, the Bhagavad Gita or other “holy” books lacked knowledge and were ignorant. I do not imply that these writers knew nothing. They may very well have been wise and brilliant for their time, but nonetheless, were ignorant by today’s standards. Not one of them knew that our sun was the center of the solar system nor that our earth was spherical or that the stars were suns much like our own. Nor did they know that huge dinosaur like creatures walked the earth for millions of years. Nor did they know that the genus Homo evolved some 2.5 million years ago and human-like beings existed for 200,000 years. They did not know of the South or North Polar regions, whole continents, islands or cultures. They suffered the ignorance of limited history and inability to travel widely. As in every era we are limited to the extents of our knowledge. We, though, are 21st century people. We recognize those limitations and substitute superstition and fear with inquiry and education. We are just entering an exploding world of knowledge that only began with the “information age” in the 1990s. The mapping of DNA is in its infancy. The potential for defeating diseases and ending human suffering may be near. More information is being shared by people since the advent of the internet than in all recorded history. Personal computer use has grown exponentially. People/Internet interdependence is a 21st century phenomenon and a necessity for sharing information. Cell phones are replacing traditional land lines at a fast pace. Yet we are at the start of worldwide wireless communication and the still primitive internet continues to evolve. Today, people press a button and speak to a recipient half a world away as if instant worldwide communication was always there!And yet there are many people on our planet who never saw a computer, cell phone or even an ordinary conventional telephone. There are those without adequate food or drinking water or who are suffering debilitating diseases and have little or no medical attention. There is an obvious need to find an economic and cultural balance in a world divided by people. Some are living in the 21st century, while others primitive in their cultures, are backward by many centuries. Fortunately we, you and I, have access to libraries, TV, radio, newspapers, and the internet. We are the fortunate ones who use those modern tools to advantage. We mustn’t squander our good fortune by wasting our education and abilities. Awareness is yet another tool of discovery towards truth.

Unfortunately, there are many well off people alive in the 21st century yet are living in the past. Many devote their hours searching for truth in ancient books while ignoring the present. Some are trapped by their education, culture or belief system. Others are victims of religious or political censorship. There are those who strongly oppose the concepts of Question, Study and Investigate. They believe you must Read, Listen and Obey. They “know” the answers already and, to them, “truth” is in an ancient “Holy Book” not to be questioned. You must follow some “wise man” who will interpret their “Holy Words” for you. Their ancient book, of course, purports to be from the words of the one and only “Supreme Being”, “Creator”, “God” or “Allah”, the SuperMan/God who is always invisible, of course, and resides somewhere in a vague “heaven”. Each purports to be “the one true God”. They believe their SuperMan/God devotes all “his” efforts to this flyspeck in the universe called Earth. Their “God” is allegedly protecting armies, cities or countries. He is also alleged to respond to the beck and call of each individual with a need. The SuperMan/God stands ready with open ear to listen to the incessant needs of “his” people. Those people also believe that “God” will smite their enemies and reward “their people” with a “heaven” or “paradise”. One might ask why the one SuperMan/God spends all his time here on Earth answering those ever demanding wants when the whole complex universe is in need of managing exploding suns, imploding black holes or whatever a universe-tender would be doing? If their God is so all-powerful and perfect why would he allow babies to be born with cleft palates or deformed bodies? Or why would he allow starving children with bloated bellies to suffer pain and starvation? It would all be so sad and ludicrous, having hundreds of religions with thousands of beliefs in a SuperMan/God, if it were not so disastrous and destructive. Not only is it destructive to the human intellect, but it adds to the potential for mass religious warfare that is emerging. Can you doubt that most of the brutality and slaughter going on ,daily, over the globe is inspired by people with a belief in a SuperMan/God? What starts out as a belief in“God” ends with acid thrown in the face of a younggirl.. What starts out as devotion to God by zealous men ends with throwing rocks and wounding police while shouting “Shabes, Shabes” (Sabbath, Sabbath). Fervent followers fill their vests with explosives and blow people up at market places. Believers honored the SuperMan/God “Allah”, anticipating72 virgins in “Paradise”, while destroyingnearly 3,000 lives at the WorldTradeCenter. People who pray to God may also hate and kill each other and have for ages in Dublin. Examine the record of violence by believers in aSuperMan/God over the past two thousand years! Do these bizarre practices belong in the 21st century? Isn’t it time for us to become part of an enlightened society? Like most seekers of truth we often find more questions than answers. Questions may be good things. Answers, when they are wrong, lead us to fanaticism or genocide. Truth leads us to enlightenment and is necessary for personal and societal survival. We, you and I, are seekers of truth.

I am concerned with “heaven” but not in the traditional sense. There is a beauty and mystery to the night sky and its significance regarding time and how we see it.And it reminds us of the enormous scale and our miniscule part of space. We know that the “Entity” humans call Creator, God, Allah or Holy Spirit that many believe in must be at least some 13.7 billion years old. There is no way to know anything about that “Entity” yet. We will set out to discover some new truths, here, and clean out the cobwebs of misconception. The image of “God” in the minds of many of us is that of a grandfatherly white haired, white bearded man. Hardly surprising, considering the elder males were thought to have knowledge and power. But if he were to be like that image he would not be only old, but extremely old. Not just a hundred or a thousand years but at least thirteen billion years old. Many humans, without examination, repeat mindless stories about “God” or the origins of our planet and universe. In their quest to understand the mysteries of our world, they invent an entity greater and more powerful, responsible for our fate. Since all we knew of power is strong menwe invented a “God” like us. Many adults have already, deeply embedded in their psyche, some idea of a man-like God, aSuperMan/God , an all-powerful God who is everywhere and controls everything. Many adults also have a second, contradictory view of God. A view in which evidence is based on measured facts as in the sciences. Two contradictory views of “God” simultaneously?! Yet there are many people who study and accept the evidence of evolution who also accept creationism as viable. Two simultaneous views! It couldbe maddening! It could result in alcoholism or drug use. Hopefully, with education, childish views of life’s mysteries change. Those mature changes add to your tool chest.

Current scientific theory is that our Earth formed about 9 billion years after the start of the “Big Bang” and the formation of galaxies, billions of suns, orbiting planets and

moons. That universe is filled with black holes, cataclysmic explosions, nebulae and a

host of discovered and yet to be discovered objects. At that time some 4.5 billion years ago a new young sun with its blinding light and searing heat began.

Our planet Earth, plausibly, could not have formed before the circumstellar discs that formed our planets and moons.Our sun and its solar system resides in some remote and not particularly important part of our galaxy. It is central to nothing. Belief that we and our planet is important and central to the universe does not have validity. There is no reason for an “Entity” that would be responsible for the universe to focus “Its” efforts on this planet. Only the ignorant attempted to place our Earth in an exalted position in the universe. The same ignorance believed our planet as central with the sun and planets orbiting Earth. The same ignorance created the concept of SuperMan/God, a God who is

“human-like us”. Social changes occur relatively slowly. Acceptance of new ideas may not get transmitted easily. It is true that change usually brings discomfort at first. Don’t fret. There is plenty of heavy stuff here, but there is also humor, and certainly joy in discovering truth. Let’s continue the journey of enlightenment and the quest for truth. See how quickly we are moving now?

The astronomical 60 year leap from first flying machine to manned lunar landing is in itself awesome and thrilling that humans could progress so far so fast. While there were only two men in first moon walk the mission required the employment of 400,000 people by NASA. Yes 400,000 people! It also required knowledge and technical abilities worldwide by thousands of theoreticians, scientists, inventors and others long before this feat could even have been considered. Without the knowledge and implementation of things like infrared, ultraviolet, rocketry, orbital trajectories, weightlessness, space physiology and thousands of detailed data and skills, we would have remained locked on earth. Without the experience of that first manned lunar landing we would not know that our scientific theories were in fact borne out in truth. The application of the scientific method in which theories are examined and reexamined, tried and retried, tested and retested before truth is reached, pays off. The scientific method never becomes truth based on personsor institutions or power. We now have some additional insight leading to practical applications. Data acquired by experience is another tool to help us on our constant quest for truth. No, you don’t have to be a scientist, inventor or theoretician. We can learn to use our well developed mind to question anything or everything in order for us to know whether something is true or not. Use your own highly developed mind to Question, Study and Investigate.

Do I really know the difference between a fact or fiction? What you are really asking is whether something is true or not? You may have fallen into a trap. You may havebeen misled into believing there were only two choices. True or not true. Here is a very significant and very powerful tool. A third choice- I don’t know. Who wants to keep saying “I don’t know” much of the time?. But what do you say if you simply do not know? Who wants to be known as negative? So we tend to take the easy route and, whether or not we know it for a fact, will present an answer with authority rather than admit to not knowing. Didn’t that feel good! Not only will we avoid using “I don’tknow” but we wouldn’t even use its close cousin “I’m not sure” . So we go on in our daily discourse, and when a question arises, our mind invents answers, proudly, with authority (and bluster). Intruth the phrase “I don’t know” is really power. It is acknowledgement to yourself that your own words have integrity. There is nothing to be ashamed of. There is no way a humanbeing could be expected to know everything about everything. At those times the message, “I don’t know” is a powerful truth. And truth is more important than winning points. Shakespeare used these words to convey that strong message: “To Thine Own Self Be True…”. You needn’t be armed with encyclopedia and reference books to answer every question. You only need to be honest and enjoy the words you speak whenever anyone asks you a question. If you do, you will speak with authority and power. You have yet another optionreplying to a question when you do not know the facts. Simple. You have “opinions” and “beliefs” that are not verified or verifiable but you are entitled to express them. Youcan express yourself by stating your own personal “Opinion” or “Belief” . You then become an adult and speak as an adult. You have accepted responsibility for your words. Try it. Practice it. Learn how honest, accurate and powerful your message becomes when you take responsibility for your words. Say, “I don’t know but I believe ……….” or “I don’t know but my opinion is ……….” . You might also try “I’m not sure but I think….”. “Opinion”, “Belief” or “Think” says it is mine. It accepts ownership. I am responsible. Practice, practice, practice until those words precede your message. See how intelligent, powerful and adult you are! People will respect your integrity. It will also encourage others to imitate your clarity. You will lead people to better ways of communicating with you on an adult level. Your integrity is another tool used in your quest for truth.

You are welcome to question, reject, accept or refine my earlier writing of the universe. Don’t accept it because I wrote it or because I am a knowledgeable space scientist. I’m not. I researched the “age of the universe” and chose NASA and universities with world-wide scientific reputations over bizarre ideas that are not well thought out.

For my purposes, whether an event occurred 13.7 billion ago or one billion years ago, is to illustrate that the known universe is so vast and so seemingly incomprehensible that it challenges one’s mind. Try to wrap your mind around one thousand million years. Pause and ponder the words “one thousand million years”! To reach our nearest star, traveling at the speed of light would take 4 years. Say it aloud. “It would take four years, traveling at the speed of light, to reach our nearest star”. Listen to how strange and foreign those words sound to our ears. With billions and billions of suns and billions and billions of planets and other celestial objects, little wonder that the ancients were so awed by the night skies that they created Gods to reside there. Modern people like scientists, astronomers and cosmologists study the sky and learn to decipher its mysteries. Countless amateurs, across the globe, use telescopes nightly. Some of these make major contributions to science. Bear in mind, fewer than 200 years ago, alpine dwellers did not climb their own mountains, out of superstition and fear. Today people living in those alpine regions are among the world’s leading researchers. Not only there but the scientific communities all over the globe are committed to scientific development and the space programs. It is amazing how powerful information and education has added enormously to our knowledge base. As human beings we are capable of learning and making use of that knowledge. We are open to inquiry. We do not hide behind ignorance and superstition. How good it is to be alive at such a time and have a mind to explore with!

To know the difference between a fact and a figment of one’s imagination, is the difference between “adult conversation” and “immaturity”. An immature person will hold a point of view based on unquestioned, undocumented, authority. That authority does not hold up to scrutiny. It does not hold up to questioning, investigation or examination, in the light of day. An immature person will cling to his defenses with words like “we” as if the collective “we” is authority. As in, “we always do it that way” or “my family always said”. Another authority used is that of an alleged “witness”. A witness who has seen or heard an event but provides no tangible evidence. Reaching for the “we” to try to defend the “I” is an indicator of immaturity. Yet another extremely weak authority is, “it’s printed in the book”. As if a printed page itself becomes “magical”. Adults will accept responsibility for their own words. If things are factual they will stand on their own merit as truth. Truth is always subject to scrutiny.

Few human beings live as long as a single century. Very little of mankind’s recorded history existed more than 6,000 years ago even though humankind has been around considerably longer. The first book printed using moveable type did not exist until the 15th century. Astounding but true, till this very day, most of the inhabitants of our planet either cannot read, do not have free access to worldwide information or have their information denied and controlled. Even those who can read or write may be on such a primitive level as to be functionally illiterate.Fortunately in our own society most of us can read and understand and have free access to information. This helps us to make intelligent decisions and determine whether something is true or not. Unfortunately those people who lack the understanding of technical and societal complexities cannot. We recognize the importance of the tool of “adult literacy”. We need tools in order to challenge existing ideas. Every tool added to the arsenal of information leads to truth.

Most people are aware of American politics involving “attachments” to bills becoming law. Those “attachments” may be and usually are totally unrelated to the bill presented. The “attachments”, too, quietly become law without being questioned and without people realizing their affects on our society. Like “attachments” somewords drift into daily use. One wonders why those words appear “out of the blue”. They appear harmless enough and we let them pass. It is simply too ponderous and too difficult to examine every word or statement. Many words or ideas that I do not agree with, or would not choose myself, silently sneak into my own vocabulary often simply to avoid confrontation in social settings. I have, lately, become aware of many harmful phrases or concepts that pass as placid and ordinary conversation. Large numbers of people justify objections to same sex marriage or birth control by quoting the “Holy Bible”. The Bible is accepted as silent authority in all forms of mass media and most media sources are fearful of questioning it. Even though the third largest religious group on the planet is “Secular, Non-Religious”, media sources discount this. Members of religious groups have a powerful voice as a group. This may not make that voice true. The word “God” is accepted routinely as if everyone agreed with the word “God”. When large numbers of people, collectively, repeat those same ideas or concepts foisted upon them, great harm may result. I have no easy answer to this problem yet other than “awareness”. Now that I am aware I will work on solutions to that problem over time. “Awareness” of a problem is the first step in solving a problem. Remember I said earlier Question, Study and Investigate. In the case of significant ideas there are not enough questions, studies or investigations before accepting something as “truth”.

I feel fortunate that my daily life is enjoyed in an area where there are four seasons. Working in wood, metal & plastics also photographyare more than hobbies to me. Those art forms have brought much joy to my life as well as being able to share my work with others. Mostly, I appreciate those people who trusted in me and encouraged me.

Of course I am always saddened by violence and wars. When I find evil people in this world I also try to remember there are those people who do tremendous good. I am fortunate to live in the U.S.A. where I am free to exercise my beliefs and gather information about any subject I choose without fear of Government interference or censorship. The one word that summarizes my lifetime here is “Opportunity”. I appreciate the imperfect but relative orderliness of our system of laws. I appreciate the fact that, in my lifetime, I was always safe from attack or invasion. I rarely missed an opportunity to learn from others. I reflect on my past achievements and the many opportunities to work in them and accomplish them with productivity and happiness. Not everyone feels joy today. Many people do not have the exuberance to use their opportunities to enjoy their daily works. The zest for life seems gone for many. In view of living in a relatively well-off society I learn of too many people suffering anguish. After all, we do have indoor plumbing, hot and cold running water, heat and air conditioning, refrigerator, washing machine and a running automobile. Our bellies are full and we sleep on a soft mattress. Yet people suffer. Even those living in mini- mansions with gated communities, two cars and vacation homes still suffer. A million opportunities for creative, joyous living are at our fingertips, yet so many surrender their minds and bodies to drugs. Yet there is not a place in the United States, city or rural, that doesn’t buy and sell illegal drugs. Why is it that some people find their lives filled with accomplishment, satisfaction and joy while others are bored, unhappy and suffer an unrewarding existence? Frankly, I do not know. I care, I have empathy for their sadness but I cannot help them. The fact is that they are unhappy with their daily existence while my days are mostly filled with satisfaction. There has never been enough time for all that I want to do in a day. To read, study, build, draw or think of ideas. I suspect that many of the sad ones are people who are not prepared to deal with the complexities and decisions needed to make intelligent choices daily. I suspect they have dropped out and accepted the pablum of an “easy fix”. Alcohol, drugs or promise of a heavenly paradise is their preference instead of “Question, Study and Investigate”. Those who seek joy use the words “Question, Study and Investigate”. This has helped me avoid traps or pitfalls and find truth and beauty in our universe. Spending time thinking is a great investment. Thinking should always precede acting. Few activities are more important. Thinking is the most significant tool a human being can use.

Put aside the world of science andphysical existence of the known universe for a moment. What is currently held to be widely accepted by a significant and powerful percentage of our population concerning the origin of the Universe, Earth and the first Human is baseless and corrupt.

Who has not heard or read the words from what is commonly called the “Bible”, “Holy Bible” or “Old Testament” about the story of “Creation”? It is the beginning of the narrative of how all creation began. The unknown entity responsible for creating theuniverse is described as“God” and a human-like god at that. ASuperMan/All-powerful Being and a male to boot. A giant, floating in outer space, who can breathe upon oceans. No I am not going to dissect the Bible, Koran or any other religious tome. I am going to let you use your awareness of these few, but significant words there. Using the tools “Question”, ”Study” and “Investigate” see if you accept those lines as facts.

Gas Pillars in the Eagle Nebula M16

Pillars of Creation in the Star Forming Area

From the King James Version of the Holy Bible.

The Book Of Genesis

Chapter1

“When God began to create heaven and earth, the earth was then without form, and void, and darkness was over the deep, and God’s breath hovering over the waters.

And God said, “Let There Be Light”. And There Was Light, That It Was Good …..”

Wham! Like rabbits out of a magician’s hat. Without pause the author introduces a super human-like being as “God” with the multiple tasks of creating the universe and Earth and light. Giant in power and proportion to blow over the oceans of Earth and“speak”, with human-like vocal chords, words addressed to no one since there was not a person in the universe to hear it and spoken in a language only known by God. Really?Who would accept this story as “Holy” or as “God’s Words”? The planet Earth started 4.5 billion years ago. Which human being could possibly be around to have witnessed such events?

With the experience of at least 9 billion years of existence since the “Big Bang” and the experience as “ The Creator” could anyone write such simplistic and childish tripe? Is this all the honor, majesty, awe and respect for the “GOD” responsible for the Creation of the Universe believed in by so many devout followers? Shame!

Use the tools to Question, Study, Investigate and probe for evidence of a SuperMan/God or evidence thatEarth and “heavens” were created together. What evidence exists? None. Yetthe story persists because it is written in a book, an alleged “Holy Book” not to be questioned. In some parts of the world questioning may bring death. Once the unexamined mind accepts that concept of “heaven” they are safe from the restrictions of evidence. Whole myths can be generated about “heaven”. It can include “heavenly mansions”, “heavenly robes” and “heavenly gates” one must pass through to enter.If the storyis purely allegorical it might be acceptable for some purpose. It certainly does not belong with “adult conversation”. It belongs in the myth category. Yet a person swears on a “Holy Bible” in a courtroom. As if it ever is proof of telling the truth. But why be surprised by it? How could the ancients, who believed in a world where the sun circled around a central flat Earth think otherwise? Those people lived in dread of falling off the edges of the earth, never had a telescope and were totally unaware that the night sky was filled with suns like our own. What would you expect from such ignorance? And what of the practitioners of these fables, today, who continue to repeat and teach without providing evidence? Compare the compilation of data gleaned from mankind’s collection of scientific and astronomical data with those words from “Holy Books”. What majesty we are learning from the accumulation of knowledge by scientists. Look at the chart of the Periodic Table of the Elements. How perfect. How true. How well each number fits like pieces in a jigsaw puzzle. When I was born some of that data remained blank. During my lifetime, decade by decade, scientists added to “the Table” of knowledge. It is a difficult journey. Recent additions could only have been discovered because new known elements have lives of only a fraction of a second. What mysteries from the “Entity” lie ahead to illuminate our truth? Each addition to new scientific evidence adds to information that brings us closer to truth.

Because wedo not have all the facts does not mean we don’t know any of the facts. Some deny the theories concerning evolution because segments are not yet complete. Nonsense. There is irrefutable fossil evidence and layered timetables of evolutionary changes over eons. We have the evidence. One might ask why is it that dinosaurs trod the earth by the millions for millions of years, and not a single “Holy Book ever mentions them? An omission?Or were they ignorant of history? They simply did not know the existence of dinosaurs. They believed in a human-like Godwith arespiratory system complete with lungs, nose and throat to “breathe onto the waters of the earth”.The SuperMan/God would not likely have two eyes, to peer down from the ether through at least 13.7 billion light years. Nor would his skin or hair or skeletal system be suitable for the Earth’s environs. “He” a male? With a male sex organ, the very thing that defines the word he. What for? For Mrs. God?

Interacting Galaxies in Group arp 194

People who claim to know the origin of the universe are legion. So are those who claim they know “what God wants of you”. How could they? These people are charlatans, profiteers or simply ignorant. When people finally reach the level of honesty with a healthy “I don’t know”, they are on their way to better mental health. Miracles are exciting but miracles based on nonsense have no value. More than a billion people on this planet believe, literally, that Mohammed rode a winged horse to heaven. Would that belief make it true? More then a billion believe literally that the SuperMan/God had a son who died, returned to life and resides in “heaven”. Does that make it true? Many people believe literally there was a “Garden of Eden” complete with their names “Adam and Eve”. And they accept a talking serpent and a SuperMan/God that punished all serpents by taking away their legs and turning them into snakes. Can you have any more disrespect for an “Entity” that created billions of galaxies? If you seek real miracles try the factual ones. How about the miracles of those thinking fellow human beings using their well developed minds? I mean the scientists, mathematicians, from lab assistant to advanced thinkers and theorists like Einstein. A person who could envision splitting the atom, or bending gravity. Those miracles are the ones that enabled the first human footsteps on our moon in 4,500,000,000 years. Think of those numbers! And it happened in our own time.There are more revelations in the coming 21st century than the world has yet to dream. Enjoy using your wonderful inquiring mind and keep your sense of balance and humor. Consider that intelligent people a century from now with their accumulated tools andknowledge may think of us as primitive and ignorant too. Even though they maybe aware that much of their data is based on our works we may still be considered primitive to them. There is little doubt that there will be some people a century hence who may yet dress, believe and practice as those thousands of years earlier. I’m sure you are not like those. Don’t take yourself too seriously because we, none of us, have all the answers. At least we know that we don’t have all the answers. We only have a quest for truth and discovery in this ever ongoing journey. How else should it be? Be true to yourself and see what you may discover.